Thursday, February 6, 2020

The Pac 12 on US Sports Net Featuring: Arizona, ASU and Utah softball programs set to get their seasons underway at the Kajikawa Classic and Build Incredible Bat Speed For Baseball & Softball!

No. 5 Arizona, No. 22 Arizona State and Utah softball are all set to get
their 2020 campaigns started at the Kajikawa Classic. Pac-12 Networks
analyst and former Arizona pitcher Kenzie Fowler breaks down the
student-athletes to watch this weekend as all three teams face off
against the likes of Portland State, Western Michigan, Seattle U, Kansas
and No. 12 Tennessee. Catch all the action starting the morning of
Friday, February 7th live on Pac-12 Networks.

Build Incredible Bat Speed For Baseball and Softball!

No
one knows more about improving bat speed than Bob Alejo (former
strength and conditioning coach of the Oakland A's and now the Personal
Conditioning Coach of NY Yankee's Jason Giambi). Learn how Bob gets his
athletes to have a blazing fast swing!

The speed of the bat head through the
hitting zone is crucial for making good contact and for hitting the ball
as far as possible, two good things for a hitter. There is no question
that a slow bat is a bad bat.
To be honest, a quick bat does not ensure a hitter a great average
either. We know a good hitter has many more qualities than strength and
bat head speed. My point is to remember the other qualities which are
important parts of hitting before expecting increased bat head speed to
cure your average! Now that we understand what bat speed can and cannot do, here's how to create a quicker, stronger bat. Abdominal TrainingThe trunk (abdominals and low back)
create a powerful twisting motion during the swing. Rotational torque
provides speed and momentum to the arms and eventually the bat head.
Like other muscles, it is necessary to develop strength by using
resistance. A common mistake with abdominal training is to perform body
weight resisted exercises and expect the abdominals to continually gain
strength. In the beginning you will develop a certain amount of strength.
However, after a while the exercises become nothing other than
calisthenics or maintenance type movements. To develop strength you must
add some sort of resistance to the movement-as is the case in all
exercises. The good news is that you can use most of the same
traditional stomach exercises plus added weight, to get the desired
results. The three areas for you to concentrate on are the lower, upper and oblique abdominals. Upper AbdominalsWeighted crunches
(non-weighted crunches shown) - Lying on your back with legs up in the
air, knees bent at 90 degrees, hold a weight of your choice at
straightened arms length. Using only your upper abdominals, raise only
the upper body, keeping your back flat on the ground. Three sets of
20-40 repetitions. Lower AbdominalsHanging leg raises
- Hang from an overhead bar, with your feet not touching the ground.
Your grip should be about shoulder width. Contracting the lower
abdominals, lift the legs together, knees bent at 90 degrees, so the
knees are just above waist height. Lower and repeat. Three sets of 10-25
repetitions.

* This a difficult exercise which does not require much weight to
increase the difficulty. Use ankle weights for the resistance. * Do not rock back and forth to make it easier to raise the legs. * To increase difficulty without adding weights, keep your legs straight while lifting them. Rotational AbdominalsStanding weighted twists - put yourself into an athletic stance with
your feet spread at a comfortable distance and your knees slightly
bent. Hold a weight about 6-to-12 inches in front of your body. After a
slow warm up, begin to twist at the waist (do not twist or bend at the
knees) as rapidly as possible. The key to rapid movement is maintain a
low, balanced stance and make sure your shoulder reaches the chin on the
twist. Three sets of 20-40 repetitions. Leg StrengthNever underestimate the value of leg strength for good, powerful
hitting. The legs do not appear active. And in terms of movement, they
really are not. But it is the strength of the legs that enable the
abdominals and trunk in general, to promote bat speed.
As the swing begins, the stride is in place and the body begins to
rotate. Without a firm base, the body will not be able to generate any
strength from the legs into the trunk. The force is generated from the
ground, into the legs, to the trunk and finally the bat. Without leg strength, the force necessary to start a powerful bat is
not produced. To take it a step further, the swing might be flawed due
to only upper body generation and nothing to stabilize the legs. Basic leg strength has been outlined in previous articles. Do not
expect to have the best swing or the most powerful bat if you are only
going to work on the upper body and ignore your legs. ForearmsBeginning with the grip and finishing with the forearms (the two are
connected), the bat head will take the proper path if there is strength
in the hands. Notice how I say hands instead of forearms. This is
because the grip strength (fingers, hand) is the most important part of
forearm strength for baseball. Take a look at a swing and follow through. The movement is not about
forearm flexors or extensors. There is really no point in the swing
where these movements are dominant. However, the hand and hand strength
are involved the entire time. You can have strong forearms, but not necessarily a strong grip.
This is why you must work grip-specific exercises into your routine,
such as squeezing tennis balls, racquet balls and softballs. This will
strengthen the fingers, hand and overall grip. When you add these
exercises to the already common wrist curls and reverse wrist curls, you'll have excellent results. Total BodyWhen you are looking for running speed, a powerful swing or mph on
your fastball, you don't just work the specific muscles involved. Take
the approach that the entire body is a system and when all the parts
work together efficiently, the outcome will be much more positive than
singling out certain muscles. Train your whole body if you want optimal
results, not to mention reducing the risk for injuring yourself. Other Tools For Bat SpeedThere are a few gadgets and machines advertised to increase bat
speed. My advice is to stick with the basics, because there are so many
variables that affect bat head speed which cannot be directly trained,
such as pitch recognition or reaction time. Factors such as strength and
hitting mechanics are variables that can be improved by some legitimate
means, or rather, means which have been tried over the years and have
worked.
One thing that has been used often, but incorrectly, is the weighted
bat. When you use this tool as a way to become stronger, it is important
to maintain your game swing. What I mean by this, is that your swing
should not change even though the weight of the bat is increased. Most of the time the weight of the bat is far more than is needed to
increase power in a swing. How many times have you seen a hitter work
with a weighted bat in a slow, awkward motion that looks nothing like
his swing? More often than you should! One thing that has been discussed in the development of power, is
the need for speed. Speed of movement must be present if power is to be
increased. Speed can be slightly reduced if a weight is being used, only
because power increases when using the correct weight. Movement is also important when training for power. For the swing to
increase in power, the weighted swing has to be similar to the regular
swing or there is no transfer of power. The same situation exists when
you run with a weighted vest or ankle weights. If you run differently
with the weights, then it does not have a positive effect on your normal
running style. My suggestion is to use a bat that is only a few ounces heavier than
your regular bat. Try to use the same length as well. This way the
swing will be the same, but because of the added weight, you will be
increasing power with your normal swing. Be careful not to use the weighted bat in normal game or batting
practice situations. Your reaction time will be the same, but your bat
will be slower at game speed. I recommend hitting off of the tee or
using soft toss to work on your weighted game. About The AuthorBob Alejo the former Strength and
Conditioning Coach, Oakland Athletics, 1993-2001. Any questions can be
addressed to Bob Alejo at att_27@hotmail.com.

About The Author

StrengthCoach.com features over
4,000 pages of speed, agility, strength and power programs for every
sport. Plus you can have a professional strength coach create a
personalized program for you - guaranteed to get you in the best shape
of your life.

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